Chapter 1: You Have to Double Slash
Dart quickly cut into the wolves leg as he slashed down, diagonally to the left. He did the opposite and cut into its tough face, causing it to splinter and die.
"Double slash!"
But this was no ordinary wolf, this was one made of wood.
Dart picked up some branches from it and put it in his pack and took off running towards camp.
The red armored warrior stopped in his tracks and crouched in the ferns, looking at the camp, seeing two odd animals.
The camp was made up of a few simple tents, made from branches, sticks, and large leaves. It was pitiful, but a place to call home. And a home needs guarding.
Dart viewed these odd creatures from afar, moving to a nearby tree. These animals were obviously horses, but not like the ones he knows. They had much abnormal colors, one being a Zebra with gold rings adorning its body, the mane striped in some kind of mohawk. The other a purple color, mane a darker purple with a magenta stripe present, the tail followed the same design and straight brushed look.
Dart drew his sword, setting the recovered firewood down. He stood, leaning against the tree. If it was one thing he learned about these woods, everything tried to kill you. He spread apart his legs, preparing to run, exhaling a breath when he was stopped, a hand on his shoulder.
Dart whipped his head left, seeing Haschel's old face. The fist fighter motioned for him to stay quiet as he began climbing the tree. The purple outfitted man, climbing fast, very unbecoming of an old person. He stood above the two horses, curling one of his hands into a fist, revealing the weapon on his knuckles.
Dart held his hand up behind the tree, Haschel seeing all five fingers up.
One went down, they both began stretching. Four fingers up.
Another down. Haschel drew his fist back and Dart took a sprinting position.
Only two left, Dart let out a bated breath.
One finger remained, dart took hold of his sword with both hands.
A second after Dart ran out from behind the tree, Haschel dropped from the branch, his fist thundering. The lavender colored small horse jumped out of the way, her mane slashed off by Dart. The Zebra fell down limp, Haschel had knocked her head hard with his fist, causing her to go unconscious.
"What in the name of Celestia?!" The remaining horse shouted.
"Don't let up Haschel, it could be a trick." Dart warned as he readied his blade.
Haschel ran up fast to the house like creature. He suddenly knew the name of it, a pony. Haschel punched once then lead into another and drew back both his fists. The old fist fighter punched forth, energy released.
"Ferry of Styx!" Haschel found the impulse to say. The pony flinched back.
This was a common problem the group had, acting on odd impulses to say words aloud in the middle of battle.
"What are you things?" The lavender pony asked, firing a magic bolt out that disappeared when it touched Haschel.
Spears of ice started to spike into the old man. Rapidly piercing him. At first they were the size of arms, then legs, whole people, the size got massive and resembled a bus before stopping. Haschel had taken a large amount of damage and now lay heavily injured.
Dart knew now that this was a tough foe and brought out a red item from his back pocket, provoking it to glow. His body enveloped in flames and birthed unique armor and wings, his sword changing into a much more powerful looking weapon. He had gone dragoon.
Dart flapped his wings, hovering in front of the pony while it stared in awe at the power.He threw his sword high and began to charge energy in front of him, forming a small meteor like ball that brewed flame all over it.
"Flame...Shot!" Dart announced and punched the ball, sending it into the pony, burning it significantly and setting it afire momentarily, she took good damage, the power of dragoon magic was great indeed.
Haschel threw an item into the air, a circle of yellow and blue lights cascaded down around him, the same lights turning into circles that reverberated around him. He felt much better afterwards, his wounds healed.
The pony ran up and smacked Dart hard with its hind legs, not doing much damage to him while he stood as a dragoon.
"I didn't want to fight!" The lavender pony shouted, trying to get the battle to stop.
Dart brewed power in himself before taking off, flying high. He slashed down upon the foe, backing up a little and taking another hit, backing up greatly again and laying a horizontal slash on the pony. He flew far back in the air and spiraled forth, stabbing. He then flew high into the air, a flame wave sprouted at the pony's legs. Dart flew back next to Haschel.
"I didn't..." The lavender pony attempted words and fell unconscious, bleeding profusely.
Dart quickly tied ropes around its hooves and looked around, seeing its tracks. Returning to normal afterwards, a flash of red light concealing him.
"We should go and check out the area it came from...there might be more. The people here could use our help against these evil things." Dart spoke, tossing the pony over his shoulder, planning to ask the residents of this land about it. Haschel picked up the Zebra, carrying it the same way Dart was carrying his own incapacitated foe.
The two had left their other friends that had been stuck here behind as they walked on, following there tracks for hours, coming to a clearing that showed a town far off, a cottage nearby, and farmland near the town. They kept continuing on, the sun almost set as they come upon the town, more of the weird horse creatures staring at them.
Dart had dropped his cargo and quickly drew his sword, Haschel gently placing the Zebra on the ground, unlike Dart.
"Haschel...run or fight?"
"How much spirit power do you have left, Dart?"
"Plenty..."
"Stand and fight...we go dragoon."
In great lights of red and purple, Dart returned to his Dragoon form, the ponies staring at his awesome power.
Thunder rained down around Haschel, progressively getting bigger as he evoked the inner power resting in the purple gem of his dragoon. A large bolt struck him and instantly his purple armor formed around him, wings blasting forth from it as he took to the air a few feet high just like Dart.
The ponies began to cower, some looking brave, but most slowly backing away from them.
A cyan flying pony came rushing towards Dart, rainbow colors all about her tail and mane, leaving a colored trail. She was rushing way to quickly than Dart thought possibly. Both Dragoons knew this was a terribly hard fight ahead of them.
Dart raised his sword, blocking the blow, but sustaining a lot of bruising, still flying normally thanks to the great punishment he is used to.
Haschel threw his hand to the sky, open palmed and lightning struck down around him until he closed it, the great bursts of electricity, hit the cyan creature, making it vibrate harshly, the other ponies battling were quickly shut down from capable combat.
Dart opened a portal, disappearing soon after. A great gout of flame erupted from the air, a large reptile like beast appearing, hovering with flames as its wings slowly extend.
"Fear the Red-Eyed Dragon!" Dart yelled from seemingly nowhere as the beast flew quickly towards the unknown pegasus, setting it a light with many flames, explosion sprouting everywhere, causing mass chaos on the land as well, grass instantly dead and few wooden structures on fire. After the dragon disappeared in another burst of flame, a great lava and fire explosion happened at the pegasus as it hit the ground hard, no longer able to fight well, but still conscious.
"I surrender! No more!" It cried for mercy in a high pitched cracking voice.
The two fighters had landed, no longer hovering above the ground, Dart feeling a bit stronger after the fight, significantly in his Dragoon form, Haschel feeling the same small strength.
They had found a bracelet of rainbow hair on the pegasus.
